Colfax Chamber hires new director

COLFAX — The Colfax Chamber of Commerce hired a new Director, Nikki Nolt, 34, who started Thursday, June 1.

Nolt found the job by attending the Chamber meetings and, upon seeing the announcement for a new director, decided to talk to previous Director Molly Keogh, deciding that the job would be a good fit.

Chamber of Commerce President Toni Jorgenson stated that they’d started the process to find the right candidate in February.

“We took our time finding one to fit our needs,” Jorgenson said.

She further explained that the hiring committee had three people from the Chamber of Commerce, two from the downtown association, and one from the city to ensure they found the right fit.

Qualifications for the job included experience in a leadership role within a Chamber or member organization, communication skills in public speaking, understanding of financial statements and grant writing, marketing experience, relationship building, and multitasking.

The Chamber was looking for a self-motivated, reliable, responsible, and accountable individual who was organized and detail-oriented.

Nolt will be in charge of financial oversight of the Chamber and serve as spokesperson with other groups or organizations and individuals. She will also attend regional meetings as a Chamber representative for Colfax Economic Development.

“Working on our membership this year will be a large part of her job,” Jorgenson said.

Jorgenson stated that Nolt came with high recommendations to serve in the position.

“She has worked with the library and Friends of Hospice, and she provides what we were looking for in a person,” she said.

“I loved Colfax and serving my community,” she said.

Nolt is from a town called Mineral in Washington, which she stated has a population of about 250.

“Colfax is a big city to me, with grocery stores,” she said.

The Nolt family moved to Colfax in 2015, thinking it would be just one stop on their journey, but within a few months, Nolt stated that they knew it would be where they raised their children and would stay a long time.

Nolt and her husband have three little girls, two in elementary school and one starting preschool this fall.

She further explained that they have yet to make any big plans for the Chamber, but she is excited to help with Winterfest and work with the chamber team to bring tourism to Colfax and show what the town offers.